Golf is a sport wherein multiple players take turns hitting balls in order to reach a goal—the hole. While golf is very popular, it requires substantial skill and commitment in order to play well. In addition, an 18-hole round of golf takes approximately 3-5 hours, representing a significant time commitment.
Many persons who play golf recreationally often place some money at stake through betting. Common golf betting routines include Nassau (low score on front nine, low score on back nine, and low score for the full 18 holes) and Skins (each hole has a particular dollar amount and ties carry over the “pot” to the next hole). Variations can be applied in which a foursome is split into two teams, and those teams can play best ball (lowest score by a team member represents the team's score on a hole), alternate shot (the players on a team alternate shots), or scramble (each player on a team plays a shot from the tee, and then each player plays a shot from the best position of the subsequent shots). There are numerous variations in the nature of betting golf, and the above list is not meant to be limiting or exclusive.
In fact, the United States Golf Association has a “handicap” or “index” system that provides golfers with a means of competing, and fairly betting, against each other even if they are not of equivalent ability.
In recent years, one of the more popular games to bet, in general, has been poker, including the “Texas Hold 'Em”-style of poker, where bets can be placed in multiple stages of a given hand of poker.
Similar to the “Texas Hold 'Em”-style of poker in which each hand constitutes the basis for a betting system, golf bets are often based on a hole-by-hole scoring system. Thus, while not previously recognized, there may be some applicability of a “Texas Hold 'Em”-style betting system and a round of golf. The major drawback to this concept, however, is that a round of golf takes a long time to play, and many persons who might enjoy betting in a golf context are unable or unwilling to devote a half of a day to such an endeavor, but would rather have a more time-effective, casino-like application of a “Texas Hold 'Em”-style betting system to golf.
To that end, with the advent of mobile applications and mobile games, it is now feasible to apply a “Texas Hold 'Em”-style betting system in a golf context in which an online, digital, electronic, mobile, or other similar platforms such as a virtual golf simulator or casino floor game, for a golf game can be infused with a betting scheme that is like “Texas Hold 'Em”-style poker betting.
With the immense popularity of golf, poker (including online poker), and online games, there is a need for a system and method of playing and betting golf that does not require a high skill level and time commitment needed for an actual golf game, but that maintains a high level of interest and enjoyment, and facilitates a betting scheme.